By Ollus Ndomu
A South African court has found Malawian pastor Mlotha Nelson Usale guilty of running a syndicate that stole batteries from Vodacom and MTN cellphone towers between 2021 and 2022. The 59-year-old pastor was involved in swapping the e-battery management systems with different manufacturers and repainting the battery casings to disguise them as commercial solar batteries, which he then sold on social media.
Police recovered 53 stolen batteries during their investigation. Despite Usale’s religious position, the court showed no leniency, underscoring the severity of the crime and its impact on critical telecommunications infrastructure.
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